Disclaimer: See Chapter 10 for details

Chapter 11: The Great Ritual Deck, Part 1: Dukurorider's Plan

"And I'll start off this duel!" Dukurorider declared, drawing his sixth card. "And I'll summon Earthbound Spirit (500/2000) in defense mode and end my turn.

"That's it?! This is gonna be easier than that boat challenge!" Joey responded. "I'll play Armored Lizard (1500/1200) in defense mode and play one card face down and now I'll end my turn!"

(Clever Mr. Wheeler. You thought I would sacrifice my Earthbound Spirit to summon a more powerful monster. Clever, but not clever enough.) Dukurorider thought. "I'll draw and now summon Water Omotics (1400/1200) in attack mode. Next, just incase you were thinking of trapping my monster, I activate Bait Doll! Let's see what you're hiding!" he stated as the face down card flipped up.

"Perfect. A Chasm of Spikes card. And since you couldn't have activated it until I announced my attack, your card will be destroyed!" Dukurorider explained as the card burned until there was nothing left of it.

"And now I can shuffle my deck after I add Bait Doll to it." Dukurorider added as his disk automatically shuffled the deck. "Now Water Omotics, attack and crush Armored Lizard!" he commanded as the woman let loose a water dragon which launched a stream of water blowing back Armored Lizard.

"I'll set one card face down and end my turn Joseph."

Joey drew. "You were lucky last time, so now I summon Alligator's Sword (1500/1200)!"

"Wait! I activate my magic card, Dark Wall of Air! I cannot be attacked by your monsters for this turn!" he explained as a black fog covered both of Dukurorider's monsters.

"No! I play one card face down and end my turn!" Joey declared. "That face down card won't help me at all, I hope I can trick him into not attacking." He thought.

Dukurorider drew his next card. (Not exactly what I wanted.) he thought, (but I know how to make that possible.) "I activate my Deck Master Ability!" he announced. "By discarding 2 cards from my hand, I can summon one ritual monster card from my deck!" His deck instantly shot out one card, which he grabbed.

"And now I activate the magic card, Curse of the Masked Beast! By sacrificing Water Omotics and Earthbound Spirit.." he began as they took places on two stands and disappeared. "I am able to summon a powerful creature, the Masked Beast (3200/1800)!" Dukurorider finished as a giant masked creature wielding a large staff walked onto the field.

"Now, Masked Beast, destroy his Alligator's Sword!" he commanded as the creature swung its staff, slicing the alligator in two. (J's LP: 2300)

"Are you sure it will be as easy as you previously stated Mr. Wheeler?" he laughed.

"Err." Joey growled, drawing. "I play the magic card Scapegoat, which will summon four sheep tokens!" he yelled as four different colored sheep appeared on the field. "I'll set one card face down and end my turn."

"Masked Beast destroy one Scapegoat!" he instantly commanded as the monster sliced one sheep in half.

"And now I summon Winged Sage Falcos (1700/1200) in attack mode. Attack and destroy his second sheep!" he commanded as the bird sent a wave of wind blowing back and destroying the second sheep.

"And don't think those other two sheep can protect you! For now I activate my trap card, Destruction Wave! Since it's activated at the right time, I can destroy your remaining two sheep!" he explained as two black hands grabbed the remaining sheep and pulled them into the card. The card then exploded.

"Now next turn you'll have no defense!" he declared.

(He's right.) Joey thought. (I've only got one monster in my hand.) He drew his next card.

"I'll activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards!" Joey yelled picking up his next two cards.

"Now I summon Swordsman of Landstar (500/1200) in defense mode and play one more card face down and end my turn" announced Joey.

"What a desperate move!" Dukurorider retorted, drawing. "I will finish you off now Joseph! Winged Sage Falcos destroy Swordsman of Landstar!" he commanded as the monster let another gust of wind shatter the swordsman.

"Masked Beast move in and destroy him!" Dukurorider added as the beast ran up to Joey, ready to finish this.

"Keep on walking into my traps! Reveal Black Wire! This card will allow me to take control of your monster, if the attack would end the duel! So, Masked Beast is mine!" Joey explained as thick black wires wrapped around the beast's arms and legs and dragged him to Joey's side of the field.

"Now it's my move. First, I'll sacrifice The Masked Beast to summon Flame Cerebrus (2100/1800). Flame Cerebrus, attack his Winged Sage Falcos!" Joey commanded pointing at the target, the three heads launched a dark red fireball that blew through the flying monster. (D's LP: 3600)

"You think just because you cleared the field of both of my monsters and lowered my life points a little, that you're going to win? I believe not." He stated drawing his next card. "I think my luck will change! Go, Shining Abyss (1600/1800) and now I'll activate my magic card, Watch Tranquilizer! This card will reduce your monster's attack power by 100 times its level!" Dukurorider explained as a watch materialized on his arm. He directed it at the Flame Cerebrus.

Six poison needles hit the cerebrus in the neck, and it whimpered slightly: (Flame Cerebrus: 1500/1800) "Now Shining Abyss, attack and wipe out the Flame Cerebrus!" commanded Dukurorider as the monster let out a white beam sweeping across the bridge and blowing away the flaming beast. (J's LP: 2200)

(One more.) Dukurorider thought.

"To end my turn I'll activate Golden Temple." He added and Joey drew.

"I'm fixing to bring down ya life points!" Joey declared. "First, I set three cards face down and activate Mage's Rage! For each magic or trap card I remove from the field, I can inflict 500 points of direct damage to your life points!" he explained.

"And.what will that help you accomplish?" Dukurorider questioned.

"It'll all be clear once I activate Giant Trunade!" Joey continued as the vortex from the sky opened up, sweeping up all the magic and trap cards and let them be returned to the owner's hand.

"No! I lose 2000 life points!" Dukurorider yelled as four black balls of energy surrounded the duelist, each briefly shocking him. (D's LP: 1600)

"And that puts me in the lead!" responded Joey who suddenly stopped celebrating. "WHAT?! Why is your Golden Temple card still on the field?!?" he demanded to know.

"Simple amateur, my Golden Temple card can't be destroyed by your magic cards!" snickered Dukurorider.

"Fine then. I'll summon Baby Dragon (1200/700) to defend my life points and end my move." Joey growled.

"Shining Abyss, destroy his Baby Dragon!" was instantly commanded after Joey finished his sentence. The same white beam blew away the dragon, which let out a faint cry. "I end my turn." He added on.

Joey swiftly drew. "I activate Life Shortening Treasure, which for now allows me to draw 5 new cards." He explained, grabbing his first five. "And next, go Tiny Guardian (1400/1800) in defense mode and I'll end my turn after playing this card face down."

"You've actually forced me to sacrifice! So, I'll activate the magic card, Commencement Dance! And by sacrificing Shining Abyss and Silver Fang from my hand." he began as the beast appeared on the field and both were absorbed into a vortex, which let out a woman with a sharp long sword. "to summon Performance of Sword (1950/1850)!"

"Performance of Sword attack now!" commanded Dukurorider as the woman struck her sword on the ground sending a shockwave at the guardian, dissolving him.

"And things will be getting much worse Mr. Wheeler! But for now I will end my move." Dukurorider threatened.

"Nice shot. But now I summon Zombyra the Dark (2100/500), go Zombyra attack and destroy Performance of Sword!" Joey commanded as the monster ran and performed two slices, cutting the monster in three pieces. (D's LP: 1450)

"And that'll end my move!" Joey added. (Zombyra the Dark: 1900/200)

"You fool! You've just helped me destroy you! I needed you to destroy my Performance of Sword. You played right into my hands Wheeler. First, witness the power of the Golden Temple!" Dukurorider said as the card shot out gold beams of light onto Dukurorider's Platinum Disk, shooting out the card he wanted, which he greedily snatched.

"First, for my plan to work I needed you to destroy certain cards, and I needed to destroy certain cards of yours! I had to keep certain cards in my hand and throw away others so my plan would work! First, I summon Senju of the Thousand Hands (1400/1000) who will let me summon a ritual monster from my deck." He explained as he grabbed the card it spat out.

"Next, I activate Soul Release, which will allow me to remove up to 5 cards from play! So, I'll remove Flame Cerebrus, Performance of Sword, Baby Dragon, The Masked Beast, and Water Omotics!" he yelled as the five cards dispersed from the graveyard.

"But wait! There is more! Reveal trap, Dimension Breakthrough, which will allow me to revive up to 5 cards that have been removed from play! So welcome back Flame Cerebrus, Performance of Sword, Baby Dragon, The Masked Beast, and Water Omotics!" he announced as the five monsters appeared on his field ready to take down Joey.

"And just to make your suffering harder, I reveal my magic card!" he declared, turning it around as Joey gasped.

"Yes it is the mighty Revival of the Mythic Dragon!" he yelled as the familiar ancient circle appeared on the field in front of the Masked Beast. Now, I sacrifice the Masked Beast.." he began as the monster floated to the circle, which opened into a portal and the Masked Beast fell.

"Baby Dragon." he added as the same effect happened, which he also did with Flame Cerebrus, and Water Omotics.

"And finally Performance of Sword!" he shouted as she flew down. Suddenly bright beams of purple light emitted from the portal, which gathered together, shooting to the sky. A shadow came down from the sky, and was soon revealed as a massive dragon with five different colored heads, representing five of the groups Dukurorider sacrificed.

"Meet the final instrument of your destruction, the mighty Mythic Dragon (5000/5000). My dragon and I will crush you JOEY!" he laughed as the dragon roared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CARDS PLAYED ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Earthbound Spirit: ****/500/2000/Fiend Type

Armored Lizard: ****/1500/1200/Reptile Type

Water Omotics: ****/1400/1200/Aqua Type

Bait Doll: MAGIC/Desc: Force the activation of 1 face-down Trap Card. If the timing of the activation of the Trap Card is incorrect, negate the effect and destroy it. If it is not a Trap Card, it is returned to its original position. After this card is activated, it is placed into the Deck (not the Graveyard). The Deck is then shuffled.

Alligator's Sword: ****/1500/1200/Warrior Type?

Dark Wall of Air: MAGIC/Desc: For one turn, your opponent's monsters may not attack you.

Curse of the Masked Beast: RITUAL MAGIC/Desc: This card is used to Ritual Summon The Masked Beast. You must also offer monsters whose total Level Stars equal 8 or more as a Tribute from the field or your hand.

The Masked Beast: ********/3200/1800/Fiend/ Ritual Type/Desc: This monster can only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Magic Card, Curse of the Masked Beast. You must also offer monsters whose total Level Stars equal 8 or more as a Tribute from the field or your hand.

Scapegoat: QUICK PLAY MAGIC/Desc: When this card is activated, you cannot summon any monster in the same turn (including Flip Summon and Special Summon). Place 4 'Sheep Tokens' (Beast-Type/EARTH/1 Star/ATK 0/DEF 0) in Defense Position on the your side of the field. The tokens cannot be used as a Tribute for a Tribute Summon.

Winged Sage Falcos: ****/1700/1200/Winged Beast Type/Desc: You can return your opponent's face-up Attack Position monster that is sent to the Graveyard by this monster or as result of battle to the top of his/her deck.

Destruction Wave: TRAP/Desc: This card may only be activated after you have destroyed at least half of your opponent's monsters on the field. Destroy all of your opponent's remaining monsters.

Pot of Greed: MAGIC/Desc: Draw 2 cards from your Deck.

Swordsman of Landstar: ***/500/1200/Warrior Type

Black Wire: TRAP/Desc: This card may only be activated if the attack launched would end the current duel. Take control of the attacking monster that would end the duel.

Flame Cerebrus: ******/2100/1800/Pyro Type

Shining Abyss: ****/1600/1800/Fairy Type

Watch Tranquilizer: MAGIC/Desc: Choose one monster on your opponent's side of the field. Decrease that monster's attack power by 100 times its level.

Golden Temple: MAGIC/Desc: This card may not be destroyed by magic or trap cards or monster effects. After the third turn this card has been on the field, you may place one ritual magic card from your deck to your hand.

Mage's Rage: TRAP/Desc: Deal 500 points of direct damage to your opponent's life points for each of your magic or trap card removed from the field.

Giant Trunade: MAGIC/Desc: Return all Magic and Trap Cards on the field to the respective owner's hand.

Baby Dragon: ***/1200/700/Dragon Type

Life Shortening Treasure: MAGIC/Desc: Draw 5 cards from your deck and 5 turns later, discard your entire hand to the graveyard.

Tiny Guardian: ****/1400/1800/Warrior Type

Commencement Dance: RITUAL MAGIC/Desc: This card is used to Ritual Summon "Performance of Sword". You must also offer monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more as a Tribute from the field or your hand.

Silver Fang: ***/1200/800/Beast Type

Performance of Sword: ******/1950/1850/Warrior/Ritual Type/Desc: This monster can only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Magic Card, "Commencement Dance". You must also offer monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more as a Tribute from the field or your hand.

Zombyra the Dark: ****/2100/500/Warrior Type/Desc: This card cannot attack a player directly. Each time this card destroys a monster in battle, decrease the ATK of this card by 200 points.

Senju of the Thousand Hands: ****/1400/1000/Fairy Type/Desc: When this card is summoned to the field (excluding Special Summon), you may move 1 Ritual Monster Card from your Deck to your hand. The Deck is then shuffled.

Soul Release: MAGIC/Desc: Select up to 5 cards from either you or your opponent's graveyard and remove them from the current duel.

Dimension Breakthrough: TRAP/Desc: This card may only be activated when you have no monsters on the field. Summon up to 5 monsters removed from play onto your side of the field in face up attack position.

Revival of the Mythic Dragon: RITUAL MAGIC/Desc: This card is used to Ritual Summon "The Mythic Dragon". You must also offer one monster of each type: Earth, Water, Wind, Fire, and Dark.

The Mythic Dragon: ************/5000/5000/Dragon/Ritual Type/Desc: This card may only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Magic Card "Revival of the Mythic Dragon". This card cannot take damage from any monster with the following attribute: Earth, Water, Wind, Fire, and Dark.